N.J. woman charged with animal cruelty toward bulldog

Hercules, an American bulldog, was found malnourished and suffering other health issues in a locked crate inside an Oak Valley home.

DEPTFORD TWP. — A township woman is accused of reducing her American bulldog to skin and bones as he lay in his own waste.

Roxanne Notaro was charged on Monday with six counts altogether of animal cruelty, having allegedly confined the white bulldog, Hercules, to a crate in the basement of her Vassar Road home, in the township’s Oak Valley section.

According to a statement released Tuesday by Rick Yocum, President of the New Jersey SPCA, Hercules was found locked in a small crate, covered in his own feces and urine, and infested with fleas.

The fleas had caused anemia, SPCA investigators said, and Hercules was emaciated and dehydrated.

“He was literally skin and bones with little or no muscle mass,” Yocum’s release said.

The dog is now in foster care, Yocum said, and is being fed small meals “to build his strength and weight.

“Thankfully, he is responding well to the care he is now receiving,” Yocum continued.

Hercules reportedly will need surgery to his right elbow because of the malnutrition and all his time spend lying in feces.

Investigators also found in Notaro’s care a malnourished cat that the SPCA said had to be euthanized.

Notaro was charged with one count of animal cruelty in relation to the cat. For Hercules’ condition, charges included depriving a living creature of necessary sustenance, failure to provide a living creature with proper food or drink and torturing or tormenting a living animal.

Yocum said a chocolate lab in Notaro’s care was healthy, except for the presence of fleas. Notaro surrendered that dog to the SPCA as well.

The group will raise funds to help pay Hercules’ medical bills, Yocum added, including the surgery on his elbow. Anyone interested in donating can visit www.njspca.org and click “Donate today.”